Louis Christian Mullgardt was born in Washington, Missouri in 1866. While he was raised and worked for many years in the Midwest,
his most influential designs were in the San Francisco Bay Area. At fifteen years old, Mullgardt apprenticed with architectural
firms in St. Louis. Six years later, he went to work for the firm of Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge in Brookline, Massachusetts,
where he worked on plans for Stanford University. In 1889, Mullgardt enrolled as a special student at Harvard College for
a brief period of formal training that was cut short by. By 1891, he was back to work in Chicago for Henry Ives Cobb, where
Mullgardt was recognized for his versatile design skills.

Mullgardt formed his first partnership--Stewart, McClure, and Mullgardt--in Chicago in 1892, and the firm lasted for two years.
He then went on a year long European tour. In 1899 he formed a short-lived partnership with John M. Dunham. From 1903 to 1904
Mullgardt worked as a structural consultant in England, where he encountered the Arts and Crafts style. In 1905, Mullgardt
arrived in San Francisco and opened his own office in early 1906. He designed houses in the Oakland and Piedmont Hills. These
were mainly speculative houses of frame construction. He also designed houses in Mill Valley and the Berkeley Hills. His synthesis
of residential styles was considered appropriately Californian.

In addition to houses, Mullgardt designed the San Francisco Juvenile Court and Detention Home (1914-1916), a 9-story reinforced
concrete building, and the Durant School in Oakland. In 1912, Mullgardt was appointed to the board of the Panama Pacific International
Exposition. For the Exposition, he designed the "Court of the Ages," an ornate courtyard that included an "altar tower" on
one side. Mullgardt designed the President's house for Stanford University (1915-1918), the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum
in Golden Gate Park (1916-1921), and a block-long business center in Honolulu (1919-1921). After a world tour in 1922-1923,
Mullgardt returned to San Francisco. It was a difficult period, and he did not adapt well to the new architectural trends.
Mullgardt died in a state hospital in Stockton, California, in 1942. Most of his drawings were reputedly destroyed after his
death.

Scope and Contents Note

The Louis Christian Mullgardt collection consists of specifications and drawings for the Evans residence in Mill Valley, drawings
and a photograph of the Court of the Ages (from the Panama Pacific International Exposition), drawings of a commercial building
in Honolulu, and photographs of an unidentified residence in Piedmont, California. The collection also includes photographs
and photocopies of specifications and correspondence for the Stevens residence in San Jose. These documents are reference
copies of privately held materials, and the Environmental Design Archives does not hold copyright on the records.

The Mullgardt collection is comprised of numerous individual donations. Records of the Evans residence were donated in 1952
and 1970, and the Stevens residence materials were donated in 1989.